Activities of musical expression and creation in the context of the integrated curriculum for early childhood education and care

Blaženka Bačlija Sušić; Vanja Šuško; Branimir Mendeš

doi:10.37291/2717638X.202562419

Authors

Blaženka Bačlija Sušić University of Zagreb https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0984-765X
Vanja Šuško Kindergarten Sunčana https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7482-1694
Branimir Mendeš University of Split https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9066-6348

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.37291/2717638X.202562419

Keywords:

Child’s holistic development, Educator, Ethnographic research, Musical activities, Project-based learning

Abstract

Adhering to the principles of social constructivism, as well as understanding the child’s personality and respecting the child as a social being in a certain context, the National Curriculum for Early Childhood Education and Care offers a new paradigm of childhood. Recognizing the child’s holistic image and the integrated and exploratory nature of the child’s learning, musical learning activities are organized as part of a whole within a project topic. To better understand and improve the representation of musical activities in educational practice, this research aimed to describe how musical activities are implemented from the aspect of integrated curriculum and project-based learning. Participatory ethnography as a type of practice-based research was applied to present and describe various forms and ways of implementing and connecting musical activities with other methodological areas within project-based learning. A total of 18 children aged 4 to 6 years participated in the activities. To gain a deeper understanding of the children's culture, experiences and development, while building trust and supporting their holistic wellbeing, the research used ethnographic methods, including participant observation with a focus on reflexivity and descriptive writing. It is concluded that educators can effectively integrate musical activities into project-based learning in line with the national curriculum, which supports holistic child development and enriches children's competencies by creatively combining music with other areas of development.

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